


Unexpected

by orphan_account



Category: Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance
Genre: Elves, F/M, Knights - Freeform, dragons omg, evil witch - Freeform, princes and princesses, wow it's a fairytale are you surprised
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-28
Updated: 2014-01-28
Packaged: 2018-01-10 08:35:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1157475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A Fairytale AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Pronunciation Key/Character List

Pronunciation Key:

Most of the time if there’s a ‘y’ it says ‘ih’ like ‘with’ or ‘ee’ like ‘free’ not ‘y’ like ‘my’  
Lyria- lee-ree-uh  
Archae- ar-kay (Archaean- ar-kay-in)   
Acynth- ass-inth   
Cyris- seer-iss   
Ryn- rin   
Mount Cyrn- seern   
Erithrea- air-ith-ree-yuh (Erith- air-ith)   
Quol- coal  
Vont- vaughnt   
Kearn- kern Mount Hearth- harth (like heart with a ‘th’)   
Erys- air-iss   
Priya- pree-yuh   
Pela- pay-luh

 

Character List:

Sofia Elena Ana Marie Christos- Princess of Lyria; the One appointed by Alastair Morgan’s dream-prophecy-prediction to save her Kingdom from the Witch  
Sir Gerard Arthur Way- Knight of Archae; One who can see things others can’t  
Sir Raymond Toro- Knight of Archae; awesome  
Sir Michael Way- Knight of Archae; also awesome  
Frank Iero- stablehand-slash-secret-undercover-Knight of Lyria; touchy-feely  
Bob Bryar- Mystic (meaning he’s from the city of Myst and also secret vision-seer but I haven’t actually written that part yet oops); super cool  
Derek Alexander- Prince of Archae; kidnapped by dragons  
Aria Song- (haha her name is repetitive) Dragon-Keeper (also haven’t actually written about her yet)  
Peter Wentz- personal servant to King Derek; moron idiot  
Master Patrick Vaughn Stump- lyre-player of Archae; turns out to be an unexpected hero (maybe…I haven’t decided)  
Acynth, Cyris, Ryn- dragons (red, green, and gold respectively) who kidnap Derek, Pete, and Patrick (oh no); Keepers of Aria (who is, incidentally, also the Keeper of them…)  
Quol- the fire demon that Sofi enslaves to help her defeat the Witch  
The Witch- main antagonist; brought forth by Queen Erys to help her, but turned against the Queen and enslaved her people; wants to take over the world, basically  
Queen Erys- queen of the wood elves; created the Witch to help her, but was enslaved by the Witch’s power  
Wraiths- enslaved elves  
Erithrea- (singular: Erith); physical manifestation of Queen Erys’ hate  
Vont, Pint, Kilne, Myst, Sycamore, Cragg, Drapp, Lent- towns in Lyria/Archae/in-between  
Pela- (as in Pela’s Peak and “oh, for Pela’s sake”) well-known female conqueror and first Queen of Lyria  
King Roland and Queen Lilith/King Daniel and Queen Anna- Sofi’s parents/Derek’s parents


	2. Unexpected

He hurried through the dark catacombs under the palace. He must hide it. There’s no other choice. They’re closing in. Its safety is more important than his life. He quickly opened the door, a few muttered words unlocking the heavy oak. He placed it in the box and whispered a few more words, watching as the box melted into the stone of the cave with only a few Runes to mark its location. Only the right person would be able to read them; only the One. As the soldiers stormed in, he turned around calmly, knowing that he would not make it out alive.

___

 

Sofia Elena Ana Marie Christos, Princess of Lyria, hated her full name almost as much as she hated mornings. Mornings were stupid, pointless, obnoxious and altogether unavoidable. She wished she could just wake up and be awake, but noooo, she had to go through the seven circles of hell (aka her mother and maid Lucy trying to dump her boneless pre-coffee form into a dress) and then, like, climb a mountain (aka the stairs to the dining hall) before fending off an annoying, outrageously flirtatious dragon (aka the footman Gabriel, who was always leering and wiggling his eyebrows). Once she got to the table, she had to be prim and proper and princess-like. Ew. She’d rather be off doing something interesting, like reading a book about adventures, or actually going on an adventure. But, oh wait, princesses were supposed to learn how to speak eloquently, sew little handkerchiefs, get married to a wealthy suitor, have children, and the hell of all hells: wear high heels. Sofi didn’t mind dresses so much; they flattered her figure and they were loose and comfortable, but the shoes were the worst. Sometimes she managed to get away with her nice black boots, but her mother usually noticed eventually and made her change.  
This one morning was no different. Lucy had opened the windows already and the fresh spring smell of damp grass was wafting in through the window. Sofi vaulted quickly out of bed and locked the door and said the keycode (which was charmed to only recognize her voice) to make sure her mother couldn’t get in. Upon slipping out into the hallway, she almost smacked into Frank, the Italian stable boy and her best friend, who proceeded to inform her that last night had heralded the arrival of one Sir Gerard Arthur Way, his knights Sir Raymond Toro and Sir Michael Way- Gerard’s brother- and the distinctly worrying absence of Prince Derek of Archae, his personal servant Peter Wentz, and the palace lyre player, Master Patrick Vaughn Stump. Prince Derek had been due to arrive several days before, and now, with his Knights stumbling in, covered in blood, sweat, and dirt, everyone was terrified. Frank told Sofi that the Knights had collapsed almost immediately and weren’t awake yet, so nobody knew anything. In shock, Sofi stumbled downstairs to the nurse’s wing to see how the three Knights were doing. They were all laid out on cots in the stone infirmary, each one breathing shallowly. Of course, they all had the expected bruises and head wounds, and Michael had a bandage around his ribcage. Sofi- who had a secret reading nook in the library and frequently read on many subjects and of many adventures- knew exactly what had caused these wounds: a dragon. Now, dragons didn’t exactly frequent the quiet valley kingdom of Lyria, but they weren’t unheard of, especially considering the dwarves’ castle just up the northern mountain. Mount Hearth was a looming cluster of craggy peaks known for its abundance of dragons and wraiths and even the erithrea, horrible beasts made of fire and smoke and hate. Nobody who tried to travel through it had ever returned. The most feared and terrible of the dragons was Acynth, a huge reddish beast with a razor sharp wit and even sharper teeth. He had sworn revenge on mankind when the dwarves’ King Hrogan had murdered Acynth’s mate Fleur. Although Acynth was blinded while trying to save Fleur, his sense of smell was just as good as any dragon’s sight. He could sense things about you, too.  
Sofi meandered back to Sir Gerard’s bedside and rested the back of her hand against his flushed forehead. Suddenly, his hand snapped up and his thin pale fingers wrapped around her wrist. His eyes opened slowly, revealing pools of green-gold confusion.  
“Who are you?” he croaked.  
“Princess Sofia of Lyria, Sir,” she breathed, still startled.  
“Oh.”  
As she explained how the Knights had just shown up at her castle, she helped Sir Gerard sit up and sip on some broth warming over the fire in the corner. He groaned and winced a little as he levered himself into a sitting position, and Sofi fretted a little, feeling slightly anxious.  
Gerard felt a little lightheaded and bewildered as this dark haired waif flitted about him, voice light and quiet. She seemed very strong-willed as she practically tipped the bowl of broth back into his mouth. He watched her quietly as she swished back and forth across the room, skirts whispering as Mikey woke up and then Ray. She helped them as well and Gerard was grateful that she hadn’t asked anything about the Prince or his companions. There were a couple of gaps in his memory, but he knew without a doubt where Derek, Pete, and Patrick were.  
Sofi watched Gerard carefully for his cheeks were flushed and she was still worried that he might have a fever from an infected wound. She hoped this wasn’t the case, and thus patted his forehead and cheeks with a cool cloth, smiling softly when he sighed happily.  
Mikey watched his brother and the girl and he saw true care and concern in her eyes as she tended to his brother and talked to him softly, reassuring him of his safety and guaranteeing that her father would help them find Prince Derek. It was only then that Mikey realized that this young woman must be Princess Sofia, of whom he had heard many tales. She was allegedly very brave and had helped her father win wars with her strategizing and wise council. She was also headstrong and smart and was familiar with many different subjects. He hoped she was right about her father’s assistance.  
“I-I didn’t want to ask this, but seeing as you’re supposed to be a company of six and as only half of that is here, I must ask if you know where Prince Derek is,” Princess Sofia seemed sincere, and Ray looked at her steadily.  
“He was taken,” Ray told her, his voice higher than Sofi had expected.  
“And Mister Wentz and Master Stump?”  
“They were taken as well.”  
“Do you have any recollection of what might have taken them?” Sofia asked softly.  
“Yes,” Mikey said solemnly. “It was Acynth.”

 

___

 

Soon after Sir Michael had divulged the information concerning Prince Derek’s whereabouts, the King arrived. He was a tall severe man with a dark beard and piercing eyes, and he wanted to know every detail of the attack that had stolen Derek. So Gerard told him, beginning with their trip north from Archae through towns Vont, Drapp, and Sycamore. Halfway from Sycamore to Lent, which is the city just before Lyria’s borders, they had been attacked by Acynth and, shockingly, two other dragons, who Ray identified as Cyris, an emerald sea dragon, and Ryn, a ridgeback from the western Mount Cyrn. Gerard said that Cyris and Ryn just seemed to be there for moral support and possible backup as they hadn’t done anything but stand guard. Acynth had swooped down, and despite the Knights’ best effort, had carried off Derek while Cyris snatched Pete and Ryn grabbed Patrick. So, weary and wounded, the Knights decided that they needed to be healed and rested before setting out to find Derek.  
“But, Father,” everyone turned to Princess Sofia, who’d interrupted, “why was Prince Derek on his way here to begin with?”  
“Sofia, do not interrupt,” her mother, who’d accompanied her father, scolded.  
“No, Lilith, it’s time she knew,” King Roland turned to his daughter. “Prince Derek was on his way here to help resolve a long-lasting conflict between Lyria and Archae through an alliance…through marriage.”  
“Marriage to- oh,” Princess Sofia’s eyes sharpened and she stood up straight, chin held high. “I won’t be traded off like an animal, Father.”  
“Well Derek getting kidnapped by dragons is a rather large setback, isn’t it?”  
“Roland! That is not humorous. His poor mother…”  
“Well I want to accompany Sir Gerard and his men on their quest.”  
“Absolutely out of question,” King Roland thundered.  
Despite the Princess’s attempts to convince him, King Roland was having none of it and refused to agree to Sofia’s accompanying them. Gerard surprised himself by realizing that he was a little bit disappointed, for in the last hour, he’d seen a caring side of Sofia that he doubted many others had seen and it intrigued him.

 

___

 

Gerard barely saw anything of Princess Sofia over the next week, but before he knew it, Ray and Mikey were waking him up and telling him that it was time to go. They took a wagon with them since they were travelling undercover. Some Lyrians obviously didn’t appreciate Archaean soldiers, and Gerard didn’t need any more problems than he already had. Accompanying them were stablehand-slash-secret-swordsman Frank Iero, an undercover Knight who was, apparently, Princess Sofia’s closest friend. The four men set off from the palace at a gallop, thundering down the road towards Kearn and closer to Hearth and thus Acythn’s caverns.  
___  
Princess Sofia did not like being left behind. She slumped in her library nook angrily, groaning and knocking her head against the wall. It thunked hollowly. Wait, hollowly? She turned to look at the stones behind her head before knocking cautiously on one. It echoed so she shoved at it and it sunk in a little. How had she never noticed this before? She pushed it harder and an entire section of the wall collapsed. When the dust cleared there was a doorway there. She rushed back to her room and grabbed a torch so she could explore. She pushed her way through the doorway back in the library and held her torch up. She was in some sort of wide passageway and she wondered if her father knew about these tunnels as she tiptoed down the corridor. A couple minutes in, she came upon a crossroads and a lantern. She lit the lantern so she could find her way back and continued to the right. At the end of this passage was a door, which she opened, obviously. Inside was what looked like a little desk with a very old candle on it. There was also a very old, rickety, and extremely untrustworthy looking chair, which she didn’t want to attempt to sit on. She held her torch up higher and noticed some runes on the wall. When she leaned closer, the runes vibrated a little and shifted, morphing into letters! She gasped and pulled back before reading aloud, “The One who has the Voice may open the hidden Door and thus possess the Key.”  
Almost before she’d finished speaking, there was a rumbling sound and the stones in the wall grated and began rearranging themselves, revealing a small niche in the wall. Sofi bit her lip and cautiously reached in, her fingers closing around something small and rectangular. When she pulled her arm back out, she was holding a little wooden box. She undid the latch and opened the lid. There was a key laying there on a bed of blood red velvet. When she picked up the key, it seemed to glow for a moment, but when she paid closer attention, she figured it must’ve just been the light. Brow furrowed, she inspected the little sliver vines twisting around the neck of the key and the tightly knotted metal at the top. It was a gorgeous key, really, with little red stones inlaid in the head, and the detail was amazing. Sofi looked back down at the box and noticed a small piece of parchment folded there. When she opened it, the runes there once more changed into letters and she read:  
 _Last month I had a vivid dream in which there were three men fending off a dragon, but no matter how hard they tried, they could not stop the dragon and his comrades from taking their companions. I dreamed also of a girl with a long, dark braid, the One who can open the Door, the One who must be you for you are reading this. This girl would rise up and would defeat the Witch and her servants. It must be you, my dear. I dreamed also of one more thing: love. Love, my dear, in unexpected places. Do not trust anyone save the three Knights, your lovely small friend with the dark hair, and the broad-shouldered man with the piercing blue eyes. I pray that you will know of whom I speak. Godspeed, my child, and may you defeat your enemies and save your Kingdom._  
 _Your Humble Servant, Alastair Morgan_  
Sofi was in shock. Alastair Morgan? Alastair Morgan had been the palace Magicker (no, not Magician, that’s not real magic) hundreds of years ago at the time of King Maxwell! He’d been the whole reason that Lyrian Kings used as little Magick as possible! He’d allegedly stolen- she gasped- a key! But if Alastair was to be believed, then…she had a sinking feeling that someone within the palace had twisted the story to make it seem like Alastair was the one in the wrong, when he was really just trying to save the Kingdom! She had to catch the Knights and Frank, who she was certain was the “small friend with the dark hair”. But how could Frank do anything? Actually, why was Frank even with the Knights? He was a stablehand for goodness’ sake! She stumbled back out into the library, and even the fact that the wall rebuilt itself behind her couldn’t shake her from her task. She rushed to her room and began shoving breeches and light shirts into her canvas pack. She changed into a simple green dress and a dark cloak. She couldn’t risk anyone recognizing her. Although she knew that the guards would attempt to stop her even though they couldn’t recognize her, she also knew that it was inevitable that, by morning, everyone would know she was gone. By this time, it was late in the night, and as she tiptoed down to the armory, she knew she had to be cautious and quiet or she’d blow her cover. She slipped down the stone steps, sticking close to the shadows. Once in the armory, she packed three small knives, one of which she slipped into her boot, a bow and quiver of arrows slung over her back, and a thin elven sword strapped to her hips. She made a stop in the kitchens for several apples, some bread, cheese, and a waterskin. She also got some sugar cubes for her horse Priya and snuck out to the stables to saddle her.  
“Alright Pri,” she whispered. “They’re gonna try and stop us, but you can’t let them catch you. Keep running, girl, keep running. Don’t stop for anyone.”  
She galloped down the cobblestone path and, as she’d predicted, the guards swarmed out of the towers and down the parapets, but she ignored them and urged Priya on faster and faster over the bridge and down the road until they were several miles away from the palace. She knew that the guards wouldn’t follow them this far, so she slowed, shushing Pri and stroking her neck.  
“Good girl, you did wonderfully,” she cooed and fed Pri a little sugar cube from her pack. “Alright. Now to find the Knights and Frankie.”  
Her map told her that the Knights’ plan was to make their way to Kearn, which was at the foot of the mountain and, from there, hike up to Acynth’s caverns on Pela’s Peak.  
“Okay, Pri, if we ride hard, we can catch up to them in Kearn. Well, providing they rest there for a few nights.”  
The next four days were filled with the thundering of Priya’s hooves digging into the ground. The towns of Pint, Cragg, Kilne, and Myst passed by in a blur of stopping to eat some generic soup and a crust of bread before heading back out on the road. Sofi was weary from hard riding and lack of sleep and her legs and back were sore and aching. When she finally reached Kearn, she booked a room at the Tangled Vines Inn. She took Priya out to the stables and made sure to thoroughly scrub her down and brush her mane and tail, pulling out all sorts of leaves and brambles and sticks. Once she was clean, Priya knickered happily and Sofi led her to a small stall so she could rest. Sofi made her way up to her room and washed herself, slaving off days’ worth of dust, sweat, and grime and brushing out her tangled curls. She changed into a soft white dress and had an upstairs attendant bring her a mug of coffee before she turned in for the next three years. She sighed happily and sipped the hot dark liquid, relaxing against the feathery pillows. The coffee made her drowsy and before she knew it, she had slipped off into a deep heavy sleep.  
___  
In the morning, Gerard sat in his and Mikey’s room and pored over the map.  
“There has got to be an easier way to do this, Mikes. We can’t just hike straight up a mountain!”  
“Maybe there’s a passageway.”  
“Please be serious, Michael.”  
“No, really! There’s tales of some hidden staircase or something…but the tales also talk about there being some slumbering being in there, too.”  
“It’s called a tale for a reason, Mikey,” Gerard sighed and rubbed his temples. How on earth was he going to get four men up the side of a mountain that no one’s ever come back from? And he’d have three more on the way back! He groaned and stood up.  
“I’m going to get some food,” he said. “Pack up. We leave by noon.”  
When he made his way downstairs, he got a bowl of porridge and some coffee and sat down at one of the thick oak tables by the fireplace. He surveyed the room as he ate, eyes skipping over fair hair and blue eyes there, a long chocolate-y braid here and- he almost choked on his food. A long chocolate-y braid, small figure, slim neck and fingers. She looked just like Princess Sofia. He wished fervently that she’d turn around, but she continued speaking to the broad man at the counter, gesturing wildly about something or other. He couldn’t stay any longer, so he rose quietly and made his way back up the stairs. Ray and Frank had joined Mikey when Gerard pushed through the door, brow furrowed.  
“What?” Mikey asked immediately.  
“I…It couldn’t have been, but I could swear I just saw Princess Sofia downstairs.”  
“Actually,” Frank piped up, “it really wouldn’t surprise me if she’d followed us. She’s never been one to turn down an adventure and this is the biggest one she’d ever get a chance to go on.”  
“But it’s dangerous!” Gerard squawked incredulously.  
“All the more appealing,” Frank shrugged. “She’s kind of insane.”  
Gerard just shook his head and began putting his things back into his pack before making sure they had all of their weapons accounted for. They had already stocked up on provisions for the trip, and Ray had the food bag. Each of them had a waterskin and a sword and Frank had a bow and arrows. Gerard nodded.  
“Let’s go, men.”

 

___

 

The woman watched from the shadows, her dark eyes piercing. The Knights and their friend were leaving the town. With a flourish of her cloak, she disappeared into the darkness to tell her Mistress.

 

___

 

Sofi stood in the alleyway and watched the Knights and Frank as they wove their way down the street, her cloak pulled up around her face. She crept behind them at a safe distance, watching as they disappeared into the woods outside the town. She clutched the key box in her pocket, took a deep breath, and followed them in.

___

 

The forest was dark and eerie, birds screeching every so often, twigs snapping underfoot. Gerard shivered a little and kept his hand on his sword. He really didn’t want to have to spend a night in here, but he knew it was inevitable. The other three men seemed just as cautious as he, Frank even going so far as to have an arrow at the ready. A twig cracked behind them and they all snapped to attention, whipping around to face the sound. Nothing.  
Sofi sucked in a breath and flattened herself against the oak’s bark.  
“Anything?” that was Ray.  
“No, nothing,” and that was Frankie.  
“Keep moving,” that sounded like Gerard.  
She waited until they had continued on before peering cautiously around the trunk after them.  
“Uh, what are you doing?”  
She managed to keep herself from screaming by clamping a hand over her mouth. When she whipped back around, there was a tall broad-shouldered man with piercing blue eyes staring at her. He looked unimpressed and arched one eyebrow.  
“Nothing,” she let out her breath and pressed a hand over her racing heart. “You scared the heck out of me!”  
“You’re not doing ‘nothing’, you’re following three Archaean Knights and their friend.”  
“How…?”  
“I was at the Inn. I’m an observant person.”  
“But how did you know they were Archaean?” Sofi demanded.  
The man flushed, “Okay, so I live in Myst. I overheard them talking and decided to follow them.”  
“A-HA!” she poked his chest. “I knew you weren’t just some curious townsperson! What’s your name?”  
“Bob,” he told her.  
“Seriously? Bob?” she looked disbelieving.  
“Yes,” he said firmly. “Bob Bryar.”  
“Well, Bob Bryar, would you like to accompany me? Alastair told me I could trust the broad-shouldered man with the piercing blue eyes.”  
“What,” Bob’s eyes widened.  
When Sofi had explained the whole reason she was following the three Archaean Knights and Frank, Bob started laughing. He hadn’t believed her until she’d finally pulled out the Key and the message from Alastair. Then he stared incredulously from her to the note and back for an entire minute before stammering out, “O-Okay.”  
“Well, it’s settled then.”  
The two of them set off after the Knights and she answered all of Bob’s 4562387236 questions about where they were going and why and blah, blah, blah. Once they caught up with the Knights, it was nightfall (a/n: I just typed knightfall help me) and they each climbed a tree so they could keep track of the Knights while also getting some sleep.  
Sometime in the night, Sofi was awoken by a howl. It sounded way too close. And sure enough, four wolves soon prowled into the clearing, snapping their jaws.  
“Oh hell, no,” she heard Bob hiss from his tree.  
Gerard suddenly woke with a start and snatched up his sword.  
“Ray, wake Mikey and Frank, please,” his voice was measured, but it trembled a little at the end.  
All four of them backed up towards each other, holding their swords out in front of them. These wolves were larger than normal wolves, standing about four feet off the ground, all lean muscle and razor sharp teeth glinting in the firelight. Gerard flicked his sword at one and it didn’t even flinch.  
“We are so screwed.”  
Suddenly one leaped at Frank, knocking his sword away. It tackled him to the ground and Sofi sucked in a breath from her tree, knuckles white on the branch. She notched an arrow cautiously, silently, but Frank and the wolf were rolling around and she was afraid she’d hit Frank. The other three men looked like they were seriously trying not to help, and she knew they’d realized that it was more important to make sure the other wolves didn’t try to help the one on Frank.  
Frank’s arms were giving out and sweat was dripping into his eyes and he couldn’t hold the wolf off for much longer. Suddenly something thunked to the ground and a blinding light flared up around them. Someone was chanting something in a language he didn’t understand, and the wolf suddenly whimpered pitifully and launched itself away from him, slinking off into the underbrush, tail between its legs. He stood up and Ray was there immediately, checking his face and arms for bad wounds, but he only had a few deep scratches from the wolf’s claws and teeth. The light started to die down and they all looked toward the source. Someone was standing there, long hair whipping in the firelight, arms raised above her head, something clutched in her hands.  
“Sofi?!” Frank asked incredulously.  
“Hi, Frankie,” her voice was quiet, soft even and he stumbled over and threw his arms around her.  
“What are you- How did you- What?!”  
She chuckled, “I uh, learned some things. Especially just now.”  
“You didn’t know you could do that?” Ray sounded confused.  
“Uh, no.”  
“That’s kind of strange because as soon as I saw you I knew you had Magick. It’s obvious. I mean, I’m trained to notice it, but…it’s preeeetty clear.”  
“Huh,” she breathed. “Weird.”  
“Yeah,” Mikey and Gerard said at the same time, eyes wide and shocked.  
“Could you please warn me before you go all Sorceress on us and blind me?” a broad blonde man jumps down from a tree.  
“Guys, this is Bob. He’s…Bob.”  
“Hey, I saw you at the Inn!” Gerard exclaimed.  
“Yeah…I kinda followed you from Myst. I overheard you talking and it sounded intriguing. I wanted to know if you were really going to come here,” Bob explained sheepishly.  
“What if we knew you were listening and we lured you here so we could kill you and then…like eat you or something?” Frank asked, raising his eyebrows.  
“You’re like four feet tall, you little munchkin. I could totally take you,” Bob’s unimpressed face was actually terrifying.  
“Okay, we need to sleep,” Gerard held up his hands to keep Frank from replying to Bob. “I’ll take first watch, okay?”  
“I’ll stay with-“ Sofi began.  
“No. That took energy from you,” Ray told her adamantly. “You need to sleep.”  
Sofi grumbled unhappily, but crawled in next to Frank, snuggling up against his chest. Gerard’s stomach tightened, but he ignored it and turned back to Ray.  
“I’ll wake you up in a couple hours, okay?”  
The night passed without any more interruptions, and everyone huddled around the fire the next morning, eating little pieces of bread and cheese quietly.  
“We need to get out of this forest by tonight,” Gerard said solemnly.  
“Oh! Princess Sofia? I have a book for you,” Ray rooted around in his bag as he spoke. “It’s about spells and it has some rune translations and a few simpler incantations for you to try if you want.”  
“Thanks. I’ll be sure to look at it,” Sofi thanked him from her cozy spot under Frank’s arm. “But please call me Sofi.”  
Ray nodded, “As you wish.”  
She accepted the book and tucked it into her pack.

 

___

 

Eight long sweaty hours of walking later, the mountain’s craggy peak loomed before them.  
“How the hell are we supposed to do this?” Frank breathed, slinging an arm around Sofi’s waist and resting his head on her shoulder.  
“We need a plan,” Gerard said firmly. “Come look at the map, guys.”  
While the guys pored over the map, Sofi paced back and forth in front of the cliff. Something niggled in the back of her brain, tickling her conscience. She sat down cross-legged and closed her eyes, breathing in deeply. She reached back into her mind and grasped the little tickly thing like a rope. It tugged back and she followed it to a little room in the back of her mind. There was a map there on a table and on the side of the mountain in this map was a little glowing blue door with runes on it. The runes told her the incantation phrase she needed to use to open the door. She breathed in again and pulled herself back out, a little surprised at her own mind. Somehow all of this was partially instinctive and partially new knowledge. She supposed it had been repressed and that finding Alastair’s Key had awakened everything. In a sort of Magickal fog, she stood up and walked over to the wall. She pressed her palm against the smooth stone and whispered the incantation quietly.  
“Sofi? What are you- whoa,” Frank came and stood next to her. “How-“  
The wall had begun to glow, a door etching itself into the side of the mountain. Sofi repeated the phrase three times and stepped back. All five men stared at her, jaws low in shock.  
“I told you, Gee,” Mikey said smugly. “I told you.”  
“Well I guess that answers how we’re getting up the mountain,” Ray breathed.  
“Um, there is one other thing that we need to consider,” Sofi turned to face them. “There’re wraiths in there. There’re even erithrea in there. There’s also a sleeping fire demon from three thousand years ago, but we shouldn’t have to worry about him. (a/n: LOTR reference, anyone?)”  
“There’s a what now?” Gerard crossed his arms over his chest.  
Sofi laughed nervously, “A sleeping fire demon.”  
“Sofia Elena Ana Marie,” Frank said severely, “why wasn’t this mentioned like five days ago?”  
“I only found out about him just now! The runes told me…” she twisted her hands sheepishly.  
“Sofi,” Ray groaned, “how do you even fight a fire demon?”  
“Um,” Sofi said, “you don’t. You be quiet so it doesn’t wake up and enslave us.”  
“Oh for Pela’s sake, Sofi, tell us these things,” Mikey’s grumbles echoed off the corridor walls as he poked his head inside. “We need a torch,” he observed flatly.  
“Got it,” Gerard said brightly. “Well, ladies first, Sofi. Go on.”  
“I hate you,” Sofi narrowed her eyes at him, but went in ahead, holding the Key in front of her. It glowed brightly and they could see shadows flitting through the dark.  
“Oh God,” Frank whimpered, pressing himself as tightly against Sofi’s back as he could without tripping himself. “Oh God, oh God, oh God.”  
“Shut up, Frankie,” Sofi hissed from in front of him.  
“Uh, Sofi,” Ray’s voice was high and it cracked on her name.  
“What?!” Sofi whirled around to find a wraith with its nose in Ray’s face, head tilted to one side. It hissed something in Runespeak and Sofi responded. It whipped its head around to face her and said something else. She replied calmly and it vanished into the shadows.  
“What did it say, Sofi?” Ray asked, his voice back to its normal pitch.  
“It was asking what you were, who you were, why you were here,” she told them, continuing on. “Wraiths aren’t evil, they’re just really territorial and defensive. They look scary, so when humans see them, they immediately freak out and start trying to kill the wraiths. The wraiths obviously don’t like that, so they respond in kind and that’s how they kill people. Because people are stupid and don’t leave them alone. They’re kinda like bees. Don’t mess with the bee, the bee won’t mess with you; don’t mess with the wraith and the wraith won’t mess with you…presumably.”  
“What do mean ‘presumably’?” Gerard gritted out.  
“Weeeelll, they could think we’re threatening them just because we’re here, but I don’t think they’re that defensive.”  
“But you can talk to them. You can make them go away.”  
“Um. I can talk all I want, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they have to listen. Don’t you know anything about politics?” Sofi stumbled a little and Frank put a hand on her waist.  
“Please be careful,” he said. “We don’t need to fall back down on top of everything else that’s happening.”  
“What about the erithrea, Sofi?” Mikey called from behind Ray.  
“They’re…violent for fun. Um, they live in the far recesses of the tunnels, so if we stick to the path my mental map tells me, then we’ll be fine. But if you veer off somewhere else, I can’t promise anything.”  
“Sooo reassuring,” Mikey mumbled.  
Sofi stopped abruptly, “Look, Michael. If you wanna whine, do it in your head. I am the one with the map. Do you wanna come up here and lead us around?”  
“No,” he grudgingly admitted.  
“Okay, then.”  
She continued up the steps, “We should come out onto a plateau-y thing in just a minute.”  
Sure enough, about twenty steps later, they made it onto a smooth stone slab. Sofi held the Key up and mumbled something. It brightened marginally and they could see that they were in a room full of columns.  
Sofi turned to look at them, “Find the Runes.”  
Ray and Mikey immediately set off with Ray’s torch and Frank and Bob went off in the opposite direction.  
“Um,” Gerard said, eloquent as usual.  
“Come on,” she said. “Look higher since you’re taller.”  
Gerard looked up at the columns. They were obviously ancient, some of them eroding and crumbling away. They were gorgeous, though, as well, with curling, swirling designs and pictures at the top. They had searched about four when they heard a shout from their left.  
“Found it!” Ray called.  
“How did you even see this?” Sofi asked as they joined Mikey and Ray by a column with Runescript curling around the base.  
“Mikey dropped a coin,” Ray shrugged.  
“Huh,” Sofi said, kneeling down to peer at the letters. She muttered the Runespeak to herself before straightening up. “In starlight’s gaze, the Gate is revealed to One in the Company.”  
“So, you?” Gerard asked.  
“No,” Mikey shook his head. “It said One, not the One.”  
“Hmm,” Sofi mused. “Could be any of us. Let’s go.”  
Sofi led them through twisting passageways and dark halls, only stopping once or twice to read her mental map. They’d been walking for what seemed like days when she suddenly stopped and said, “Here.”  
“Here?” Gerard croaked. They were all exhausted. “This is a wall. This is a wall.”  
“Exactly. The Gate,” she grinned. “We can’t sleep yet. We’re not on a real path and the erithrea will have undoubtedly been alerted to our presence. We need to be on our guard. I need to meditate and figure out a couple things. Give me five minutes, okay?”  
She sat down and shut her eyes, steadied her breathing, and reached back into her mind.  
She was in a pure white room with no way out. What do I do? she asked her conscience. Nothing. No answer. She paced the room for a moment before reaching out and touching one of the walls. A hum resounded through the room and she stepped back, puzzled. A diagram appeared, the Runes speaking of a way to temporarily transfer a little bit of her power to each of her friends so that they could defend themselves against the erithrea which were already on their way. She knew she had only a short time, so she asked about the Witch. The walls told her that the Witch was a dark being wrought from anger, malice, and hate, brought about by Queen Erys of the elves. She had brought forth the Witch for help, but in the Queen’s anger, the Witch had turned out to be more than Queen Erys had bargained for, and she enslaved the elves living in Queen Erys’ wood, thus creating the wraiths. The erithrea were what amounted to the Witch’s children, the physical manifestation of the Queen’s hate. Queen Erys was, the walls told Sofi, still alive and human (well, elf) and was enslaved to the Witch’s every demand. She was her spy, her servant, she carried out the Witch’s punishments with the power the Witch vested in her. Sofi’s mind reeled with this new information and the walls informed her of the imminent arrival of the erithrea. Sofi concentrated, and a door appeared. When she walked through it, she found herself back in the tunnels.  
Sofi gasped for breath and found all five men gathered around her facing outward, swords at the ready.  
“They’re coming,” she said. “Hurry, all of you lay a hand on me.”  
She used the incantation the walls had told her and felt a little pricking feeling as part of her power transferred to each man.  
“Your instincts will use the power when it’s needed. Do not fight it or it won’t work,” she instructed them. “The erithrea will use your fear and weakness against you. You are human. It won’t be fun, but have courage; the incantations can help you only if you let them.”  
As she finished speaking the first of the creatures turned the corner in front of them. The erithrea take almost the same form as smoke, but darker and thicker. They have reddish-orange fiery eyes that give off a muted glow, and they feed on fear, on loathing, jealousy, hate, all those dark feelings that humans shove down inside themselves in the black places where no other human can see. That is where erithrea dwell. Gerard knew this. He also knew that he harbored a thick jealousy of Frank. He knew that the erithrea would use this feeling against him, and sure enough, this first Erith floated towards him, its eyes swirling pools of red-gold. When it seemed to move away, Gerard found himself standing in the corridor still, but he was turned towards Frank and Sofi. With no warning at all, Frank dropped his sword, swiveled around, and threw his arms around Sofi’s neck, connecting their lips passionately. Gerard’s gut twisted angrily, and he found himself baring his teeth. Frank had Sofi pinned against the wall and her hands were up under his shirt and they were still moving against each other in a flurry of passionate kisses and small, cut-off noises. He closed his eyes, but they were still there, seared into his eyelids. He couldn’t shake them, but he knew he had to. He clamped his hands over his ears and sat down, picturing his favorite things. He thought of Mikey and Ray, of Mikey’s fiancée Alicia (a/n: just pretend, okay), of his puppy Sira, of his parents, his friends, of Derek and why Gerard was even here in the first place. He pictured the jealousy as a vase and threw it on the stone floor, shattering it in all directions, stomping all over it and crushing it to dust. If he wanted anything, it was for Sofi to be happy, and if that was with Frank, then so be it. When he came back to himself, the Erith was still staring him in the eyes, but now he stared back and found himself hissing an incantation, forcing Sofi’s power out at the foul thing, forcing it backward and away, forcing it apart. And with a screech, the Erith dissipated into nothing. Gerard gasped hard and looked around. Frank was on the floor curled into a ball, an Erith standing over him, its shapeless body forming a cloud around Frank’s head. Ray was obviously fighting an Erith’s influence hard, his body shaking with the effort of pulling himself out of its lies. Mikey was actually crying, tears streaming down his face, his head shaking back and forth in denial as an Erith stared him right in the eyes. Sofi was shouting Runespeak at one, a shimmering forcefield holding three more out of the corridor. Bob was conscious, muttering an incantation like Gerard had and the Erith in front of him exploded with a scream, dissipating into nothing. His eyes met Gerard’s and Gerard nodded. Bob nodded back and breathed deeply, looking around at everyone else. Frank was standing now and his Erith was gone within seconds. Ray’s was next, and then Mikey gasped and pulled himself out of the illusion, his Erith exploding almost immediately with the force of his anger. Suddenly a blue light bathed the stone wall behind them.  
“The Gate,” Sofi shouted from where she was still holding the forcefield. “The Gate!”  
Gerard looked at the wall, but it was gone. In its place was a beautiful wrought iron Gate with vines wrapping around it. On the other side were a cliff and a set of stone steps leading up to Pela’s Peak. Gerard smiled happily and darted towards it, grasping the handle and tugging the Gate wide open. He beckoned the other men through and they all followed, Sofi last, still holding the Erith off.

 

___

 

“That is impossible!” the Witch shrieked. “She cannot have defeated nine erithrea with her meager, unworthy, untrained excuse for power. It is just not possible!”  
“Your Grace,” the woman trembled, “I saw it with my own eyes. She had this shimmering wall holding three of them back and her men…they defeated their own. I swear it!”  
“No! You have failed me again,” the Witch bellowed. “You will be punished.”

 

___

 

When Gerard came back to himself after opening the Gate, Bob was leaning over him, face solemn.  
“I saw,” he said.  
“Wh-what,” Gerard stammered, paling.  
“I saw,” Bob repeated. “Frankie and Sofi.”  
“How?”  
“There’s something I need to tell everyone,” Bob leaned back from Gerard’s personal space. “I am not only a Mystic as in I live in Myst, I am also a Mystic in that I can see into peoples’ minds. However I cannot control or stop it, I can only sit and experience. I saw everything you saw in there. That was my terror from the erithrea. They showed me a mixture of all of your illusions and made me feel your fear.”  
“I- Bob,” Sofi said helplessly, putting her hand on his arm.  
“I didn’t tell you so you’d pity me, I told you so you’d know and you won’t get offended if it happens later on.”  
Sofi looked around at her companions, “Are we going to talk about what we saw in there?”  
Gerard was saying no before she was even done speaking. Frank shrugged and said, “Spiders.” And Mikey and Ray both said, “My fiancée was dying.”  
Sofi looked back at Gerard, “Are you sure, Gerard?”  
“Absolutely positive,” Gerard confirmed.  
“Okay,” Sofi agreed because Bob was shaking his head minutely at her.  
They all stood up and brushed themselves off, gathering their bags from around them and making sure all of their weapons were accounted for.  
“Aw, man!” Frank whined. “I left my arrows.”  
Ray patted his back sympathetically and they set off up the steps after Sofi.  
“Oh, wait,” she stopped and turned around. “Who opened the Gate?”  
“Gerard,” they chorused, making him blush.  
“Hmm,” Sofi arched an eyebrow and turned back around.  
“These steps are the dumbest thing ever.”  
“Can’t you Magick us up there, Sofi?”  
“Sofi, I’m hungry.”  
“Sooooofiiii, I’m borrrrred.”  
“Can we stop? I have to pee.”  
“Guys, who has my sword?”  
“I have it, now shut up.”  
“Gerard, if you don’t quit stepping on my feet, I’m gonna poke you in the eye with my dagger.”  
“I still don’t have any arrows.”  
“It’s cold.”  
“I’m tired.”  
“Ugggghhhhh.”  
“It’s daaaark.”  
“Stop stepping on my feet, Gerard!”  
“Well, sorry I can’t freaking see.”  
“Well I thought you were supposed to be able to See things others can’t or whatever.”  
“Well you know what? F-“  
“Would you all just shut up!”  
Silence.  
“Thank you,” Sofi turned back around and continued her fast pace up the steps. The company started to smell something foul the further up they climbed.  
“Ew,” Frank’s nose wrinkled up. “What is that?”  
“That’s crispy humans, Frankie,” Sofi said quietly. “Now keep your voice down, ‘cause I don’t think you want Acynth to come down here.”  
“Right,” Frank’s voice dropped to a whisper.  
They came up to the end of the steps, and ahead of them was the entrance to a huge cave.  
“Okay,” Sofi whispered, “so through there is just the antechamber, and then further in and down are the actual caverns.”  
“Where’s Acynth gonna be?” Ray questioned.  
“He has his own chamber at the very bottom. The Runes said that the humans are kept just above and to the left of his chamber, and I really don’t wanna have to deal with Acynth, so if you could all just hush and tiptoe, that’d be great. Oh, and above all, don’t touch anything.”  
They all murmured their agreement and crept through the entrance. The smell intensified and everyone tried not to gag. They crept past surprisingly organized piles of diamonds, rubies, emeralds, pearls, and there was even a pile of armor. Over there was a pile of weapons and over here were thousands of shoes. Across, hanging on the wall, were a ridiculous amount of quivers of arrows.  
Frank poked Sofi’s arm hard, “Please,” he whined softly. “Pleeeaaaaase.”  
“Fine,” she whispered back, “quickly, quietly, and for the love of Pela, don’t knock anything off. It’ll echo and then we’ll die.”  
Frank snuck over and started to pull one of the quivers off, but it caught on something and it fell. It seemed to go in slow motion, and Mikey dove towards it, just catching it on the tip of his finger. Everyone sighed collectively and Frank shrugged sheepishly. He and Mikey slipped back over and they crept into the second chamber, which had chests and chests of gold and silver. There were chests of elven crowns there, human crowns here; there were tiaras specifically in that one and bigger, kingly crowns in that one. There were dwarvish tool belts and elven sword sheaths. Frank’s mouth was wide open and Ray elbowed him. He snapped it shut and made like oh my Pela just look at it all with his eyes. The next chamber was all clothes and Gerard brightened, straightening up. He made big eyes at Sofi, but she shook her head firmly and pointed through the next doorway, where there seemed to be makeshift cells. They slid over to the doorway, and Mikey peered around the corner before signaling everyone to go across. There were about ten cells all down the hallway, and they could hear sniffling coming from three or four of them.  
“Derek?” Gerard whispered quietly. “Pete? Patrick?”  
“Gerard?” a small, dark man was pressed up against the bars of the cell to their left.  
“Pete,” Gerard’s voice was basically the definition of relief and he rushed over to the bars. “Are you okay?”  
“I’m alright, I guess. Patrick’s over there,” he nods across to where a short, round-cheeked man with red-gold hair was almost crying with relief.  
“Where’s Derek?” Gerard asked them, looking back and forth.  
“He’s down there. Hey, did Aria let you guys back here?” Patrick looked confused.  
“Who’s Aria?”  
“Don’t move,” said a voice from behind them. Gerard whipped around. There was a blonde girl, hair shorn off, standing there with a knife pressed to Sofi’s throat. “Who are you?”  
“We’re here to save Derek, Pete and Patrick,” Gerard explained calmly. “Please let Sofi go.”  
“No,” the girl shook her head. “I am Aria, Keeper of Acynth. Who are you?”  
“We are the Company. I’m Gerard; this is my brother Mikey and my friends Ray, Bob, and Frank. Sofi is the Princess of Lyria.”  
“The Princess of Lyria?” Aria turned Sofi around to face her. “You are the One. The Witch foresaw it. You are here to take the Prince and his men and then she will kill you when you are going down the mountain.”  
“Will you help us?” Sofi asked, but before Aria could answer, the floor shook.  
“Oh,” Aria said, “you must hide. Come here. I swear I’ll get you out later.”  
She shoved all of them into cells, Mikey and Bob in one, Ray and Frank in another, and Gerard and Sofi in the last one.  
“Aria?” a deep voice grumbled loudly. It sounded like someone was gargling marbles while talking. (a/n: no I have not gone insane; this is an inside joke with my sister; just watch the Batman episodes of How It Should Have Ended) “Is there someone here?”  
“Yes, sir,” Aria said demurely, “but I took care of them.”  
“Who are they?”  
“I did not have the time to ask, sir,” Aria said.  
When Gerard looked up, he noticed Derek slumped in the cell across from his and Sofi’s. He looked okay, but for the blood crusted on his forehead.  
“Where are they, then?” Acynth came thundering down the row of cells, sniffing into each one in turn. “Oh, Knights. My favorite,” he chuckled at Ray and Frank’s cell.  
“Mm, a Mystic and…ooh, another Knight,” he rumbled at Mikey and Bob’s.  
“And…what have we here?” Gerard stepped in front of Sofi as a huge clouded eye peered into their cell. “A Knight and…a woman? I have not had a woman in a very long time as I am forbidden to harm Aria.”  
He continued to peer into Gerard and Sofi’s cell and then he chuckled suddenly, “This one has a very strong scent of care and devotion around him. It’s almost love. If I’m not mistaken, he’s falling head over heels for someone. Oh, I’ve embarrassed him. I’m sorry, pretty little Knight. I didn’t mean to offend. And you, little woman, why are you here?”  
“I am betrothed to Prince Derek, sir,” Sofi called boldly. “I came to see if he still lives.”  
“Barely, my dear, just barely. But no matter, for it is night and time for me to retire. Guard them, Aria. Do not let them leave here.”  
And with that, the dragon lumbered back to his own cavern.  
“Princess,” Aria rushed over to Sofi’s cell, “Acynth is under the Witch’s spell. He used to be a great and wonderful dragon, but his mind has been poisoned by the Witch’s evil. You must defeat her, and once you do, peace will come again to the land of Astoria.”  
“But how?” Sofi questioned. “How can I defeat the Witch? Her power is so ancient.”  
“Sofi,” Bob called softly, “you need a power equally as ancient.”  
“But what-“ Sofi began.  
“Think about it,” Bob said.  
Sofi gasped and snapped her fingers, “Of course! The fire demon! But…it’s malicious isn’t it?”  
“Only if you are also malicious,” Aria said with a shrug. “The one who wakes it intentionally has a small window while it’s still drowsy. You can, well, enslave it, I suppose. It will do your bidding.”  
“Aria,” Derek croaked suddenly from his cell.  
“Derek!” Gerard exclaimed, pressing against the bars.  
“Gerard? How are you here?” Derek pushed against his cell, too.  
“They’re here to save us, love,” Aria told him.  
“Wait,” Sofi said, “are you guys…together?”  
“Not exactly,” Aria flushed. “He told me he loved me and my feelings are just as strong, but Acynth was watching closely, so we couldn’t really do anything.”  
“Well, that’s gonna complicate things,” Bob commented.  
“What?” Derek and Aria chorused.  
“The whole reason we’re here is because Derek was on his way to Lyria to resolve the conflict between Archae and Lyria by marrying me as an alliance,” Sofi explained. She hurried to add, “But we’ve never met.”  
“So you don’t love him and he does not love you?” Aria looked at her.  
“Not in the slightest,” Sofi told her. “No offense.”  
“Oh, none taken. Although you are very beautiful, you seem too strong for me. We would butt heads too often to be happy,” Derek observed.  
“You’re probably right,” Sofi chuckled.  
“But how will your kingdoms form an alliance now?” Aria asked.  
“We’ll find a way. Maybe Derek and I can just…be friends,” Sofi shrugged. “If we’re civil to each other, maybe our fathers can be as well.”  
“Okay,” Aria said, “I’m going to see if Acynth is asleep and then I can let you out.”  
When she tiptoed out, Sofi looked across at Derek, “I’m glad you’ve found someone you truly love.”  
“I am glad for you as well,” Derek smiled.  
“I- what?” Sofi looked confused, and, after a moment, Derek’s face mirrored hers.  
Gerard swallowed hard.  
“You and Gerard aren’t-?” Derek gestured.  
“I-I- Gerard?” Sofi stammered. “N-no. No.”  
“Really? Hmm,” Derek shrugged.  
Gerard’s heart sank. Of course she wouldn’t want to be with him. She was too good for him.  
Sofi’s heart was sinking, too, though. She had no idea if she had feelings for Gerard. Her stomach twisted and she bit her lip. She knew she’d have to face the feelings sooner or later, but now wasn’t the time. She didn’t want to think about Gerard, she wanted to think about the fire demon, but she couldn’t get his hurt expression out of her head. She turned away and sat down.  
“We need to get out of here,” she whispered.  
Aria came back and started unlocking cells, “He’s asleep.”  
Pete and Patrick immediately started walking around and stretching their legs, and when Derek was out, he did the same. They were now a Company of ten and Gerard was nervous.  
“Sofi,” he murmured, “how are we going to get ten people through a mountain without the Witch or the fire demon noticing?”  
Sofi’s grin was sharp, “We aren’t.”  
When Gerard opened the Gate again, he could see wraiths wrapping all over it, and erithrea peering out from the shadows. When he told Sofi as much, she looked at him funny before nodding slowly.  
“If you say so, then okay,” she told him.  
“You can’t see them?”  
She shook her head, “You could see the Gate, Gerard. It only seems right that you’d be able to see other things we can’t.”  
He was a little surprised by this turn of events, but he followed her back into the darkness. The wraiths were more curious this time, following the ten and whispering quietly. Sofi told them of their plans, and they massed in support of the Company. All of them hated the Queen and the Witch just as much as Sofi’s company. They had been in the dark for only a few minutes when a roar shook the stone.  
“Acynth,” Derek and Aria breathed together.  
“Keep moving,” Sofi said firmly.  
She led them to the edge of a chasm. There was a seemingly-bottomless pit ahead of them and Gerard swallowed hard and stepped back. Sofi stepped out into this air until she was standing over the center of the pit. The wraiths began roiling suddenly, their bodies massing, the whispering growing louder and more like screeches.  
“The Witch approaches,” Aria whimpered. “It won’t be long now.”  
The Company huddled together, but Gerard and Frank watched Sofi.  
“You love her, don’t you?” he asked quietly.  
“Wh-what?”  
“Sofi,” Frank nodded at her before looking up at Gerard. “You love her.”  
“I-I’m sorry,” Gerard flushed.  
Frank scrunched his nose, “Why are you sorry?”  
“Because you two are together?” Gerard was puzzled.  
“Oh my gosh, no,” Frank laughed sharply. “No. I love her, yeah, but not like that. Did you really think that?”  
“Don’t mock me,” Gerard was affronted now. “You’re all…touchy…”  
“I’m like that anyway,” Frank shrugged. “Plus, she’s like…my sister.”  
“Oh,” Gerard’s eyes boggled and Frank giggled. “I feel a lot better now.”  
“Good,” Frank said. “I can tell she has strong feelings for you, but she’s shoving them down because she’s focusing on this task.”  
“You really think so?” Gerard’s voice was almost breathless. He bit his lip anxiously, watching Sofi and then Frank, who was nodding.  
“Yeah,” he said just as the wraiths all quieted and stilled suddenly.  
“What-“Frank began, turning around.  
“Well, what is this?” a tall woman stood there, her features sharp and smooth, like marble.  
“We are the Company,” Derek stepped forward, “and you shall not harm us.”  
“Come on Sofi, come on, come on, come on,” Gerard muttered, watching her swirl her arms around and chant faster.  
Sofi was aware of her surroundings this time, and the sense of urgency that came with the Witch’s arrival was not surprising. She chanted as fast as she could without jumbling up her words and the shadows and flames beneath her roiled and writhed, becoming a hulking form.  
“Who wakes me?” the voice in her mind is like granite.  
“I, Sofia Christos, Princess of Lyria, the One,” Sofi calls in her mind, “I dare wake you. You will do my bidding.”  
“Why should I do your bidding?” the form questioned.  
“For you are Quol, Fire Demon, and you will help me defeat the Witch and her erithrea to save our world, and you will be released from your prison and free to roam these caverns once more,” Sofi said decisively.  
“Oh, really, little human?” Quol chuckled.  
“Yes,” Sofi said firmly. “I swear it.”  
“I will do it,” Quol said. “You remind me of another brave Princess I once knew by the name of Pela. But this was long, long ago.”  
They rose from the pit together, Quol holding Sofi perched on his shoulder.  
Gerard was fighting the erithrea and the Witch with all the power that Sofi had given him. Aria was locked in combat with the elven Queen Erys, who was as young and spry as she had been 200 years ago when she brought the Witch forth into existence.  
“We will not be defeated,” the Witch hissed.  
“Yes, you will be,” Gerard gritted out, dissolving the Erith in front of him.  
The battle seemed bleak when a rumble shook the ground and all the erithrea screeched and shot towards the ceiling.  
“No,” the Witch growled. “Impossible.”  
A hulking shadowy being rose from the pit, Sofi floating near its head.  
“I am Quol,” it thundered, “and you are not welcome here. Begone, Witch.”  
“I will not,” the Witch cried. “I am the manifestation of fear, of hate, of anger, jealousy, disgust. I will not begone, for I am the Witch and I will not be defeated.”  
“Go, woman, you know not what you do. Your foolishness will result in the darkening of every horizon in this entire land, in the death of millions. The creatures from the shadow, from the darkness, from the Barrens will return to the cities and will decimate the people. When my brothers are finished, there will be no people for you to rule.”  
“No,” the Witch called, “I can control them.”  
“You cannot, Witch, and you never will.”  
“You dare defy me?!”  
“I dare,” Quol began chanting in Runespeak, a piece of his shadow floating away from him and towards the Witch, transforming itself into a cylindrical shape. It surrounded her and formed a smoky cage.  
“NO!” she screeched.  
Sofi began speaking with Quol, their words flowing together, the cage growing thicker and darker. Suddenly the cage vibrated and a bright light flashed. When the light died down, there was a stone slab sitting where the cage had been. Quol and Sofi said one word together and the cage flung itself into the chasm, which sealed itself shut. Everyone was silent before bursting into cheers and applause, whooping and yelling happily. Frank threw his arms around Gerard, laughing wildly. Gerard squeezed back and stepped back. All around them, the wraiths were shedding their shadowy cloaks and regaining their elven forms. The Queen’s heart softened and became hers to command again, and her people gathered around her.  
“Could you find it in you to forgive me?” she questioned. “I was very foolish and naïve and I am truly sorry.”  
One by one, her elves smiled and knelt, bowing to their Queen and she felt tears prick her eyes.  
The erithrea all disappeared with one long scream, the origin of their forms having let go of her anger and hate.  
Sofi waved goodbye to Quol, who rejoined his brothers and sisters in the lowest, darkest caverns before turning back to her friends.  
“Friends,” she cried, “we are free!”  
Everyone cheered again, clustering around her and congratulating her. When the elves had disappeared to return to their woods, Aria turned to Sofi.  
“Could we please find Acynth, Sofi? I am worried about him.”  
“Of course. Gerard, if you would open the gate, please?”  
They found Acynth at the opening to his cave, huge tears rolling down his scales.  
“Acynth?” Aria called softly.  
“Just kill me now, Aria. Do not tease me,” he said, looking at her sadly.  
“Why would I do such a thing?”  
He raised his head, his eyes widening, “Why are you here, then, if not to kill me?”  
“I am here to bring you home with me, to live among us,” she said, shushing him and stroking his snout.  
“But how could you after what I did?”  
“You never once did anything to me, Acynth. I would have you come back with Derek and me. You shall be the great dragon of Archae. You shall be a hero; a brave, powerful, just beast.”  
“But how can the people accept me when I killed so many?”  
“They will understand that you were under the Witch’s influence, Acynth,” Derek stepped up. “Just as Queen Erys’ elves forgave her, so my people will forgive you. Even if it takes time.”  
“Very well. I will come.”  
“Aria, Derek,” Sofi called. “Will you return to Lyria with us first? To see my father?”  
“Of course,” Derek nodded.  
A loud trumpeting roar signaled the conveniently timed arrival of Cyris and Ryn, who touched down and rumbled out laughs.  
“We are free, my friend,” they called.  
“Yes!” Acynth cried.  
And the dragons carried the Ten back to Lyria. Gerard had never experienced anything like flying on a dragon. It was indescribable. A little scary, yes, but altogether wonderful. He grinned back at Frank, who perched behind him.  
“This is amazing!” Frank shouted.  
“I know!”  
Gerard didn’t want to get off when they landed, but he grudgingly slid off Ryn’s back, thanking him for the ride.  
“You are welcome to visit my caverns whenever you wish, little Knight,” Ryn rumbled kindly.  
“Thank you, Great One,” Gerard nodded. “I will.”  
They watched as Ryn and Cyris launched out over the parapets, huge wings flapping as they headed west.  
“Now to eat, bathe, eat some more, sleep, and then eat again,” Frank said, marching firmly towards the castle.

 

___

 

The next morning when Gerard opened his eyes, he reflected on the last month, ticking off his new experiences. He’d been attacked by a dragon, held off an Erith, used Magick, helped escape a dragon’s lair, helped defeat the Witch, ridden a dragon, and fallen in love. A pang resounded through his chest at the thought of Sofi. Maybe Frank was wrong. Maybe Sofi had no feelings for him and she was simply trying to let him down easy. He rolled out of bed and padded over to Mikey’s room to talk to his brother, who knew much more about women than Gerard himself did.  
Sofi had been up earlier than everyone else to talk to her father about what had happened. She had had to breach the subject of Derek’s love for Aria, and the King had sighed.  
“I am relieved, really,” he said, smiling wryly. “I did not want you to marry Derek. He’s not the man for you at all.”  
“He said the same, funnily enough,” Sofi mused. “He said I’m too strong.”  
Her father laughed loudly, “Oh, how right he is. But I sense something is wrong.”  
Sofi sighed, “It’s Gerard, Father. I think I’m in love with him.”  
“Yes,” her father said, kissing her forehead, “I know.”  
Sofi looked at him closely.  
“My dear, I am you father after all,” the King said. “I can sense these things. What does Frank think about all this, hmm?”  
Sofi flushed, “He says Gerard is infatuated with me.”  
Her father laughed again, “I see. Well go find the man and tell him I’d like to speak to him.”  
A knock sounded at the door. Her father called out, and the door swung open to reveal Gerard, who blushed when he saw Sofi.  
“I-I would like to speak to you, Majesty,” he glanced sideways at Sofi. “Privately.”  
Sofi rose from her chair, “I know when it’s my cue to leave.” She pressed a kiss to her father’s cheek and whispered, “Be nice, Papa. I love you.”  
When Sofi had swept from the room, Gerard sat down in front of King Roland. He cleared his throat, “Over the last month, I have done a lot of things which could be called courageous. I have fought a wicked Witch, I have defeated an Erith, I have learned that I can see things others can’t. But there is one thing in which I have been a bloody great coward, Your Majesty.”  
“And what is that, young man?” King Roland leaned forward.  
“I have fallen in love and have not told her.”  
“Well that is a travesty, Sir,” King Roland nodded.  
“I would like your permission, if that’s okay,” Gerard cleared his throat again, “to properly court your daughter.” He breathed out and rushed to add, “I haven’t done anything to pressure her; I haven’t even talked to her about it…like I said. I swear I’ll-“ he stuttered to a halt when the King held up a hand. Gerard held his breath.  
“My son,” the King said, resting a hand on Gerard’s shoulder, “did you think I would say no?”  
“Of course I di- what? A-are you saying y-y-yes?” Gerard eked out.  
“Yes, Sir Way, I am,” King Roland said softly. “My daughter is very much in love with you, and I would grant her to you. For marriage, Gerard.”  
“M-marriage?” Gerard’s voice had gone all high.  
“Yes.”  
Gerard sat there, his mouth opening and closing like a fish. He’d had an entire speech planned out of how he was going to convince the King that he was a good man, and he’d even asked Ray, Mikey, Derek, Bob, and Frank if they’d vouch for him! He looked at the King again.  
“Well, go on, then!” the King urged.  
“N-now?”  
“Go, Gerard!”  
He was up and out of his chair like a shot, flailing down the hallway, arms and legs going every which way as he called for Sofi, skidding around corners and asking every servant he passed if they’d seen the Princess. All of them said no, and soon he’d slowed down, his energy fading. He was almost inclined to be hurt, but he realized that it wasn’t like Sofi was avoiding him. He turned a corner and smashed into someone.  
“There you are!” It was Mikey. “We have to get ready!”  
“What for?”  
“They’re holding a feast in our honor, Gerard! We have to get dressed! Come on!” he tugged Gerard down the hall back to their rooms.

 

___

 

The feast was an extravagant affair and there was what seemed like the entirety of Lyria there. Besides the Lyrians, there were also three caravans from Archae. The King and Queen had come to see Derek, and there were coaches and coaches of royals and higher officials. Gerard was overwhelmed and he still hadn’t found Sofi. He craned his neck from his seat, but she was up one level next to Derek and Aria. He was at the Knights’ table with his brother, Ray, Bob (who’d been knighted that morning, apparently), Frank (who was obviously no longer undercover), and countless other Lyrian and Archaean Knights.  
Sofi looked down at everyone and felt a sense of peace in her heart. She knew she’d done something big and even though she and Derek hadn’t married, her father and King Daniel were conversing happily and the Lyrians and Archaeans were mixing joyfully, celebrating the Witch’s defeat. She touched the Key around her neck and silently thanked Alastair Morgan for helping her. Her eyes suddenly met Gerard’s and when he smiled softly, her heart tugged a little. She’d had a little time on the dragon ride over to think about her feelings for the Archaean Knight and she was very unsurprised to realize that her affection went so deep that she could now definitely label it as love. She never thought she’d fall in love. Her gaze was swept away from Gee when her father stood and announced that everyone would be moving to the ballroom for dancing.  
In the ballroom, it was stiflingly hot, bodies crushed together, sweaty and joyous. Sofi escaped immediately, slipping out onto the patio and into the hedge maze in the garden, the cool summer night a relief on her flushed cheeks. She settled next to the little pond and slipped her feet in. She sighed happily and closed her eyes.  
Gerard rounded the corner of the hedge and found Sofi sitting at the edge of a little pond, the moonlight illuminating her upturned face and making her skin like pearl. She was smiling softly, eyes closed, and his heart swelled. He could never deny his love for her now. She was breathtakingly gorgeous and he sighed a little before stepping forward.  
“Hello,” Sofi startled out of her relaxed state and smiled at Gerard, who was standing a little ways away, head ducked shyly, voice soft. His hair, which had been nicely combed, was mussed from his nervous tic of running his fingers through it, which he did twice before he stepped closer. She patted the ground next to her and he toed his shoes off and joined her, sliding his feet into the cool water. She sighed and looked up at the moon.  
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” she asked him.  
“It really is,” his voice was hushed and when she looked at him, his gaze was not on the sky, but on her, something unidentifiable softening his eyes.  
“What?” she whispered.  
“I-,” he broke off and looked away.  
“Gerard, what is it?” she sounded a little worried now.  
“Oh, it’s nothing bad,” he assured her quickly. “Quite the opposite, actually. Well, for me anyway.”  
She watched as he rubbed the back of his neck and stood, starting to pace.  
“When I was younger, I always wanted to be a Knight. When that dream came true, I was overjoyed. I never thought that I would want to retire my Knighthood. When I became a Knight, they told me that there were limitations to my relationships with other people. I couldn’t just go and be friends with anyone, and above all, I could never marry. I thought I would never want to. I was reckless and wild back then. I didn’t want to settle down; didn’t want to have a family. I didn’t think my future self would either, but then I was given the task to escort my Prince to Lyria so he could marry a Princess and form an alliance with a neighboring kingdom. I accepted this task and then the Prince was kidnapped by dragons for goodness’ sake. My guilt was unimaginable. But when I awoke in an unfamiliar castle, there was this slight, dark little pixie of a girl flitting around making me drink soup and cleaning my wounds. And then she turned out to be this insane, headstrong, stubborn Princess that ended up saving our Kingdoms without having to marry a guy she doesn’t even know. And I discovered that I was jealous. She has this friend and they’re always hugging and touching and stuff and I thought maybe he loved her. And then I realized that it didn’t matter because she still had to marry the Prince. And then when all that was out of the way and I could love her without feeling guilty I thought to myself, Gerard, are you sure you don’t wanna settle down sometime? The answer to that question used to be yes, but I don’t know if that’s still the answer,” he sat down cross-legged next to Sofi and took her hands in his and looked her in the eye. “Because that Princess I mentioned? I wanna marry her and have a family with her and protect her and love her with all my heart. And I hope she wants that with me.”  
His courage left him, then, suddenly, and he pulled back from Sofi and stood up again, “I just wanted to tell you that before I leave,” and he was gone.  
“Gerard!” Sofi cried, tears clouding her vision. “Gerard, wait!”  
He was gone.  
“But I love you, too,” she whispered into the empty night.

 

___

 

The next morning, Gerard woke up sad. His heart was heavy, but he knew, had he stayed, it would’ve been heavier. Sofi didn’t love him, couldn’t love him. She was a Princess. She deserved someone better, someone more, someone not Gerard. And he couldn’t bear the thought of her with anyone else, so he packed up and arranged to meet everyone outside.  
Sofi sat bolt upright in her bed the next morning, hoping fervently that the Archaean guard hadn’t left yet.  
“Father, are they still here?” she cried as she blew past him, nightgown flapping around her legs, hair tangled down her back.  
“They left about ten minutes ago. Why? Didn’t you say goodbye last night?”  
Sofi didn’t answer the question, just ran to saddle Priya. She thundered down the path and across the bridge. Within twenty minutes, she was crying and had caught up to the end of the caravan headed back north. She knew Gerard would be at the front so she rode harder.  
Gerard was marching up front with Mikey, tears dripping silently down his cheeks under his helmet when a murmur reached him. The Princess was riding her horse alongside the caravan. He ignored the pang in his chest until he heard something. He couldn’t understand it under his helmet, but the King and Queen halted the procession and Aria and Derek turned around and looked back.  
“Sofi?” Aria asked, brow furrowed.  
“Gerard!” Sofi cried. Gerard could see tears streaming down her face and he blinked rapidly. “Gee, please, please, please don’t leave me.”  
What? Why not? When she climbed down, he tugged his helmet off, craning his neck to see her.  
Sofi couldn’t see him anywhere until a Knight about three rows in front of her pulled his helmet off. She shoved her way through them until she stood in front of him.  
“Sofi, what are you doing here?” Derek asked. “Your father told us you were sleeping!”  
“I was,” she said softly, reaching up to cup Gerard’s face in her palms, “but the man I love was leaving me. I had to stop him.”  
“You wh-what?” Gerard was breathless and his hands came up to rest on top of hers.  
“You are so stupid, Gerard. What, did you think I was gonna say no?” Sofi laughed through her tears and stroked his cheeks.  
“That’s what your father said when I asked if I could marry you,” Gerard said softly, looking down at her.  
“Then why the hell are you with us, you dolt?!” Derek exclaimed from his horse.  
Gerard looked at him, “You need a Captain. Knights can’t marry.”  
“Then by order of my father and me, you are hereby honorably discharged from the Archaean guard and if we ever need you, Acynth can come and get you,” Derek waved a hand at Gerard and then leveled his gaze at him seriously. “I’m with the woman I love even though it wasn’t supposed to be that way. Gerard, if I’d had to leave Aria, I probably wouldn’t have left. I would rather be eaten by Acynth than separated from her.”  
“I- honorably discharged?” Gerard’s brain wasn’t processing information.  
Sofi rolled her eyes and tightened her fingers until he looked back at her, “Gee, he’s saying you can marry me.”  
“I can?”  
“YES!” literally the entire guard plus Sofi, the King, Queen, Prince, and Aria yelled at him.  
“But-“ Gerard began.  
“Oh my God, just kiss her for goodness’ sake!” Mikey begged.  
Gerard opened his mouth again, but Sofi said, “No, Gee,” and tugged him towards her. Their mouths met in a sweet, chaste kiss and Gerard slipped his hands down to rest on Sofi’s hips. Their lips slid together and he slid his arm around her waist and pulled her up against him. Everyone was cheering and whistling and Sofi was crying when she pulled away and Aria climbed down from her horse to hug her tightly. Gerard just watched Sofi’s smile light up like the sun and his heart felt full and happy. He hugged all his friends, especially Mikey and Ray and Derek before climbing onto Priya behind Sofi and galloping back to the Lyrian palace. When they got back, Sofi grabbed his hand and pulled him down, handing the reigns to Lucy, who smiled softly at them. Gerard knew they were in a hurry, but he kept stopping every few feet to press Sofi against a wall and kiss her breathless and then she would stop and just look at him, smiling happily before continuing to pull him around.  
“Father,” she burst into the King’s study, where her mother was also sitting, “I’m getting married!”  
“What?” her mother’s face was white, but her father grinned, booming out a laugh.  
“Oh, Sofia,” he said, kissing her cheeks, “I knew you’d find love. And in such an unexpected place!”  
“Oh, that’s something else Alastair said would happen,” Sofi remembered what Alastair had said in his letter.  
“Congratulations,” her father said, clapping a hand on Gerard’s shoulder. “Now why didn’t this scene happen last night?”  
“He told me this whole story and said he loved me and then he just disappeared!” Sofi said petulantly. “I couldn’t find him anywhere and I told myself I wouldn’t sleep because I didn’t wanna miss the caravan leaving, but you can see how well that turned out. So I rushed after him and he had the stupidity to be confused, Papa! Confused! As if he thought I didn’t love him just as much. Clearly he’s an idiot, but he’s my idiot and I love him with all my heart,” she said, looking back at Gerard.  
“I still have no idea what’s going on here,” Queen Lilith observed.  
“I’m getting married, Mama! I’ve just said that! To Gerard,” she gestured at him.  
“Where’s the ring?” the Queen’s tone was disapproving and Gerard flushed to the roots of his hair.  
“Ah-“ he mumbled.  
“Mother!” Sofi interrupted. “You are ruining my mood! I don’t care about a stupid ring. I care that I love him and he loves me and we’re gonna get married and have little Gerards running around all over the place making mischief and driving me crazy, but I’m not gonna care because they’ll be ours,” and she grasped Gerard’s hands tightly and grinned up at him.  
“Of course we will,” he agreed, stroking her cheek lightly. “But I want little Sofis, too, please.”  
“And puppies?” she asked.  
“What’s a palace without puppies?” he asked, laughing brightly. He was getting married. What’s a puppy added to the mix?  
And as he laughed again and swung her around through the air, they both knew, without a doubt that this was the happiest day of their lives.

 

___

 

The wedding of the Princess to her Knight was today. It was an extravagant ceremony at the foot of Mount Cyrn, and guests from all over Astoria were in attendance. Prince Derek of Archae was a groomsman, and his wife Princess Aria was the Maid of Honor. Queen Erys and her elven court were there as well, and the Queen herself was a bridesmaid. The ceremony was short, but sweet, and the couple was clearly smitten with each other. Prince Derek made a speech about Sir Way and the three dragons- Acynth, Ryn, and Cyris- made a formal apology to the Company for all the trouble they’d caused under the Witch’s curse. Queen Lilith cried and so did Gerard’s mother, which made both the Princess and Gerard flush with embarrassment. The cake was delicious and the party went on for hours. And the Princess and her knight lived  
Happily Ever After


End file.
